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Adire to Jadire, a festival of batik fabric

Published:Thursday | August 31, 2023 | 12:08 AM
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Valerie Veira, executive director at the Jamaica Business Development Corporation; Nigerian cultural diplomat, visual artist Alao Luqman; and Mariam Hinds Smith, dean of the School of Visual Arts, Edna Manley College, blending into the background of fabric
Paul Williams
Valerie Veira, executive director at the Jamaica Business Development Corporation; Nigerian cultural diplomat, visual artist Alao Luqman; and Mariam Hinds Smith, dean of the School of Visual Arts, Edna Manley College, blending into the background of fabric.
Saint International’s Deiwght Peters checking out clothes made of Jadire fabrics.
Paul Williams
Saint International’s Deiwght Peters checking out clothes made of Jadire fabrics.
Nigerian High Commissioner to Jamaica Dr Maureen Tamuno (fourth from left) and her entourage: Udeme Jacob, Haruna Isah, Tajudeen Adulkadir, Alao Luqman, Valerie Veira, Odika Agatha and Arafat Bage.
Paul Williams
Nigerian High Commissioner to Jamaica Dr Maureen Tamuno (fourth from left) and her entourage: Udeme Jacob, Haruna Isah, Tajudeen Adulkadir, Alao Luqman, Valerie Veira, Odika Agatha and Arafat Bage.
Host Dania Bennett and Bimpe Kausara Alao flaring and slaying it.
Paul Williams
Host Dania Bennett and Bimpe Kausara Alao flaring and slaying it.
Professor Carolyn Cooper wearing a dress made of Jadire batik fabric designed by Alao Luqman, standing at her left.
Paul Williams
Professor Carolyn Cooper wearing a dress made of Jadire batik fabric designed by Alao Luqman, standing at her left.
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Adire to Jadire was a fashion feast, literally a festival of batik fabric.

The launch of Adire to Jadire, Alao Omotayo Luqman’s solo exhibition of his Jadire (Jamaican tie-and-dye) batik fabrics, turned out to be a fashion show. Rightfully so. Some patrons, specially invited guests and some of Luqman’s former students, turned up clad in stylish and eye-catching attire made of the featured fabric.

Even the accessories made a statement. It was a night when art collided, mingled and mixed with fashion and style. Cloths, on show and for sale, were draped all over the space at The University of the West Indies’ regional headquarters along Mona Road in St Andrew on the evening of Monday, August 28. The show continues until September 16.